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how hard is it to...

Please excuse my complete ignorance when it comes to computer programming (I got an A in the class in hs but that's about it lol). I'm in awe of what you guys do!

I realize web design is different, so if I'm just making an idiot of myself for asking this here please be kind!

I have an idea for a pretty basic website very similar to tickld.com's design in that users can submit items that show up under "new" and readers can upvote it or downvote it. Then you can view the "Top all time" and "Top weekly" items which have the best score in descending order.

How hard is this kind of site to make? I'd need to hire someone to make it so I'd need to know how good the programmer would have to be and about how much I'd need to pay.

You need to start with a website, which would be subscribing to a shared wehbost, like GoDaddy, 1and1, cleverdot, etc. You'll pay a yearly fee (like $40-70) and then pay a yearly fee for your own domain name (like $7-$12 per year).

Once you have your own website, you can start playing ... the fun begins.

You'll need software to edit your HTML, CSS, PHP, javascripting ... so you can get Notepad++ (which is free).

You'll need software to upload and download your scripts and pages between your computer and your website. You can get FileZilla (which is free). That method of transferring files back and forth is called "FTP" - File Transfer Protocol.

Your total cost per year would be $50-$80 depending on who your webhost is.

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When you get a new webhost account, they will tell you how to access your website control panel, how to set up your own email accounts, and how to access FTP.

Any site that requires dynamic features, (forms, databases, voting scripts, content management, etc) will need to use a server-side language like PHP.

At this point you're at the hardest part of the learning curve. Not only do you need to know the basics of HTML and CSS (and javascripting), but learning PHP for your own scripting, or even installing other peoples' scripts will take some time to learn.

Loosely used term describing a way for people to log into a website and change the text, photos, data on a website. Just like the text editor you use with this forum to enter your posts. A form of CMS.